Learning Journal

1074 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: the extent of racism in canada essay

A couple of things stood out for me last class, those two things are the documentary Remember Africville (1991) presented by the National Film Board of Canada and the article The master’s tools will never dismantle the master’s house (1984) presented by Audre Lorde. As I sat in class I found myself to be bewildered for I had never heard of Africville in my short life – upon hearing it I had to think it must have happened over in Europe or perhaps Australia or was incorporated into a history that I felt I wouldn’t be knowledgeable about. When I found out it took place in Canada, I was shocked, I had never even heard of the place let alone did I have the knowledge that these kind of practices had taken place on the opposite coast of the country, the place that has always been my home, the place I love. Now I have learned through the documentary Remember Africville (National Film Board of Canada, 1991) that Africville was a black community in Halifax where conditions were poor, as in, no proper plumbing, no roads and no direct services that the rest of Halifax was able to enjoy – even though the residents of Africville were paying taxes which ultimately would end up going to improve other neighbourhoods. Still, under these conditions the residents of Africville were a happy and healthy community with hard working residents and a distinct culture which gave them an identity. Then it came to be that the government was unhappy with the conditions of the neighbourhood and forced everyone to renovate their houses to a certain code or to be given a small chunk of change to leave everything they had known behind. Eventually the neighbourhood became too wealthy for the community and eventually they had to leave for other parts which in the e... ... middle of paper ... ...g that is extremely hard to get back – an identity. Lorde (1984) stated “The failure of the academic feminists to recognize difference as a crucial strength is a failure to reach beyond the first patriarchal lesson. Divide and conquer, in our world, must become define and empower” This statement really radiated with me in a powerful manner because in my mind I always had the thought of ‘equality’ and despite knowing that there were differences amongst people – I don’t think I ever realized how great of a strength those differences could be. Works Cited Lorde, A. (1984). The master’s tools will never dismantle the master’s house. In C. Moraga & G. Anzaldua (Eds.), This bridge called my back. New York: Kitchen Press. National Film Board of Canada., & Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. (1991). Remember Africville. Montreal, Quebec: National Film Board of Canada.

Show More
Related

  • Analysis Of The Article Erasing Indigenous Indigeneity In Vancouver

    1136 Words  | 3 Pages

    Vancouver currently maintains an image as a sort of maternal ethnic melting pot, a region rich in cultural diversity and with a municipality that is both tolerant and welcoming of various displays and traditions. However, upon closer examination of recent history, it becomes clear that the concept of the city embracing minorities with a warm liberal hug is both incorrect and a form of manipulation in itself. The articles Erasing Indigenous Indigeneity in Vancouver and The Idea of Chinatown unravel the cultural sanitization that occurred in Vancouver at the turn of the nineteenth century as means of state domination. Through careful synthesis of primary documents, the articles piece together the systematic oppression suffered by BC indigenous

    Read More

  • Greatest Canadian: Pierre Trudeau

    1473 Words  | 3 Pages

    Meney, Florence. "La Peiné de Mort au Canada" ["Moving Towards Abolition"]. Radio Canada. N.p., 2007. Web. 23 Jan. 2014. .

    Read More

  • Twitter Analysis: Isla Vista Attack Puts a Spotlight on Gender Violence

    608 Words  | 2 Pages

    Rampton, M. (2008, September 1). The Three Waves of Feminism. - Fall 2008. Retrieved May 28, 2014, http://www.pacificu.edu/magazine_archives/2008/fall/echoes/feminism.cfm

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Black On The Block

    726 Words  | 2 Pages

    Since the first Africans arrived in what is now present day America in the 1500s, there has been reaffirming data supporting the importance of community to people of African descent. Despite large efforts to destroy this aspect of the African experience, many African Americans have maintained their kinships especially when the foundation is birthed from ethnic parallels. As a result of this affirmation, Dr. Mary Pattillo’s assertion on the present day black middle class and their commitment to restoring their community of North Kenwood- Oakland in her book, Black on the Block is no surprise. However, what is shocking is that the same declaration cannot be said for the African American middle class during what Dr. Pattillo deemed the ‘Black

    Read More

  • Sheryl Sandberg: The Feminist Movements

    1193 Words  | 3 Pages

    Women have been an important role in society whether or not it is not remarked to the public eye. Oppression against women is never-ending along with violent acts constantly being pursued on them for over a century which is not only crucial but it is lessening their value worldwide. The suggestion of women’s emotions being a barrier for them to be equal to men is falsified, there is not one predicament that prevent a woman from being equal than a

    Read More

  • Analysis of Generational and Racial Differences in Dionne Brand's What We All Long For

    1940 Words  | 4 Pages

    McKibbin, Molly Littlewood. "The Possibilities of Home: Negotiating City Spaces in Dionne Brand's "What We All Long For"" Journal of Black Studies: Blacks in Canada: Retrospects, Introspects, Prospects 38.3 (2008): 502-18. JSTOR. Sage Publications, Inc., Jan. 2008. Web. 21 Nov. 2013. .

    Read More

  • Essay On Colorblind Intersectionality

    1799 Words  | 4 Pages

    In other words, Carbado meant to prove that not only Black women fit into this definition of intersectionality, and therefore there are other groups of people, aside from Black women, who can share their same experiences. Carbado’s theory about gender and colorblind intersectionality comes close to being able to explain Audrey Lorde’s understanding of the Black women identity. But applying Carbado’s theory it becomes more inclusive towards other oppressed groups of people, and it highlights Carbado’s expansion of intersectionality within Lorde’s essay.

    Read More

  • ‘Analyse racialization and resistance in relation to Tuyen’s lubiao.’

    1527 Words  | 4 Pages

    Toronto is a city that is simultaneously rich in its ethnic diversity, yet paradoxically finds itself constrained by its colonial heritage. This is important, as colonial representations of race pervade history across...

    Read More

  • First Wave Feminism Essay

    974 Words  | 2 Pages

    ...over the centuries, gender inequalities have changed, from being focused on public inequality such as getting women into both in education and the workplace, as well as giving females voting rights to being focused on the diversity and variety in women’s lives in today’s society as described by third wave feminists from the 1980s onwards, focussing on the women who were previously overlooked by other feminist schools. Earlier feminist schools have been criticised for ignoring the ‘other’ which subsequently led to the development of other schools of feminism such as black feminists, (Smith, 2013). Subsequently, in order to achieve equality for all ‘types’ of females; white, black, working-class, middle-class, heterosexual and homosexual; there will need to be a development of new schools of feminism in order to explain the experiences that each of these groups live.

    Read More

  • The Sociological Effects of Residential Schools

    970 Words  | 2 Pages

    According to conservative conflict theory, society is a struggle for dominance among competing social groups defined by class, race, and gender. Conflict occurs when groups compete over power and resources. (Tepperman, Albanese & Curtis 2012. pg. 167) The dominant group will exploit the minority by creating rules for success in their society, while denying the minority opportunities for such success, thereby ensuring that they continue to monopolize power and privilege. (Crossman.n.d) This paradigm was well presented throughout the film. The European settlers in Canada viewed the natives as obstacles in their quest of expansion by conquering resources and land. They feared that the aboriginal practices and beliefs will disrupt the cohesion of their own society. The Canadian government adopted the method of residential schools for aboriginal children for in an attempt to assimilate the future generations. The children were stripped of their native culture,...

    Read More

  • The Effects Of Sexism In Society

    1057 Words  | 3 Pages

    “Sexism is an oppression that is hard to avoid, as it is difficult to rid ourselves of the social institutions of gender that we have been taught at a very young age (“Sexism in Society”).”

    Read More

  • Racial Discrimination In The Central Park Five, And The Central Park Five

    1160 Words  | 3 Pages

    In discussions of racial discrimination, one controversial issue has been the persistent oppression of Black people. Michelle Alexander would argue the war on drugs is the new Jim Crow.Ta-Nehisi Coates focuses instead on home ownership for color people and how they are forced to always be second class citizens. And The Central Park Five depicts the way in which racist ideologies serve to dehumanize people of color in order to justify that they have been robbed of their labor, civil rights, and basic human rights by a biased legal system.While I agree with all three pieces you can see the failed attempts made by African American to be equal. I have mixed feelings because Coates’s piece focuses on owning a home, respirations along with

    Read More

  • Feminist Theory - There is No One Definition of Woman

    1399 Words  | 3 Pages

    The message of Lugones and Spelman in Have We Got a Theory for You! Feminist Theory, Cultural Imperialism and the Demand for “The Woman’s Voice,” is that the entire worldwide experience of women cannot be universally articulated. Blanket definition of woman is impossible due to the many characteristics of women that make the gender so diverse, specifically race and economic status in society. “The women’s voices most likely to come forth and the women’s voices mostly likely to be heard are, in the United States anyway, those of white, middle-class, heterosexual Christian women” (Lugones and Spelman 21). Since “feminist theory” has been established without encompassing the inherently different experiences of non-white/non-Anglo women “much of the theory has failed to be relevant to the lives of women who are not white or middle class” (Ibid. 21). This displacement of a large population of the world’s women from feminist theory is extremely threatening to the development of a woman’s voice, in so far as this voice is key to fighting the battles that feminism sets out to fight: the end of re...

    Read More

  • Volar Judith Ortiz Cofer Analysis

    924 Words  | 2 Pages

    Over time, a women’s identity has been seen as powerless and incompetent to achieve anything. This image of women is being created at a young age at young age. For instance, little

    Read More

  • The Women's Liberation Movement

    1111 Words  | 3 Pages

    In just a few decades The Women’s Liberation Movement has changed typical gender roles that once were never challenged or questioned. As women, those of us who identified as feminist have rebelled against the status quo and redefined what it means to be a strong and powerful woman. But at...

    Read More

More about Learning Journal

Open Document